PREPARATION: About 90 minutes - makes 8 servings
EQUIPMENT: French chef knife, Cutting Board, Kitchen Machine food cutter, 13-inch Chef Pan.
INGREDIENTS:
- 3 medium eggplants, sliced into ½-inch rings or lengthwise.
- Kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter.
- 3 cups Marinara sauce or Eggplant sauce
- 2 cups mushrooms shredded #2 blade (optional) or zucchini.
- 3 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded #3 blade (or dairy-free mozzarella)
- ¼ Romano cheese, grated #1 cutting cone (or vegan Parmesan)
- Frech basil leaves
DIRECTIONS:
PRESSING THE EGGPLANT: Slice eggplants, sprinkle with Kosher salt, and place on a paper towel with a paper towel in between each slice, creating a stack of eggplant. Place something heavy, like a heavy cast iron bacon press or a large, heavy book, on top of the pile of eggplant rings. Salting and pressing will remove bitterness and excess moisture. Press for about 30 minutes. Then repeat the process without salting and using fresh paper towels and press for another 30 minutes.
FRY THE EGGPLANT: Preheat the 13-inch Chef Pan over medium heat to 275ᵒF, add olive oil and butter, and bring to temperature. Add eggplant to fill the pan, fry both sides until golden brown, and remove to paper towels to drain. Allow the chef pan to cool and wipe out excess oil.
BAKE ON TOP OF THE RANGE: Cover the bottom of the 13-inch skillet with a layer of Marinara sauce, place one layer of eggplant across the bottom, layer with a mixture of mushrooms, and mozzarella cheese, top with a layer of Marinara sauce, then repeat the process. The top layer, mozzarella, and sprinkle with Romano cheese.
Cover and open the vent and cook over medium-low heat 180ᵒF to 200ᵒF for 30 minutes. Remove from the heat.
Serve, by topping with grated Romano or Parmesan cheese and basil.
NUTRITIONAL BREAKDOWN PER SERVING: Calories 226; Fat Grams 13; Carbohydrate Grams 11; Protein Grams 18; Cholesterol mg 39; Sodium mg 906.
THE POINT SYSTEM: Calorie Points 3; Protein Points 2; Fat Grams 13; Sodium Points 39; Fiber Points 1; Carbohydrate Points ½; Cholesterol Points 4.
